Italian government gives final approval for bridge linking Sicily to mainland

13.5bn allocated for 10-year project to build longest single-span bridge in the world across the Strait of Messina

The Italian government has given the final approval for the construction of a multi-billion-euro bridge linking Sicily to the mainland, a project that has been a topic of debate since at least the late 1960s but has been held back by a litany of concerns, including the huge cost, seismic risks and mafia infiltration.

Giorgia Meloni's rightwing government has set aside 13.5bn to build what will be the longest single-span bridge in the world. A dream of Italy's late former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi and revived soon after Meloni's government came to power in 2022, the 3.7km bridge and its surrounding facilities are expected to take 10 years to build.